Toothbrush

ABSTRACT

A toothbrush, which comprises a toothbrush body that is provided at one end with a cleaning head that is adapted to be accommodated rotatably inside a seat that is defined in the body, for a rotation of the head about an axis thereof, the peculiarity of which consists in that the seat and the head are shaped so as to enable a rotation of the head about the axis of the seat, with an axis that is inclined with respect to the axis of the seat.

The present invention relates to a toothbrush. More specifically, the invention relates to a toothbrush of the manual type.

As is known, toothbrushes of various different forms are widespread on the market, and can be manual or electric. Usually, manual toothbrushes have a head provided with bristles, which is fixed with respect to the toothbrush body, and its cleaning action is carried out by the user who grips the toothbrush and moves it according to various different angles.

However, the cleaning action of the head of the toothbrush is not effective, in that for an effective cleaning action it would be necessary to execute a movement that is not linear, but rotary, of the type used by an orbital polisher for polishing materials of various types.

Such rotary movement is not however easily possible with manual toothbrushes, or with electric toothbrushes.

Also known are toothbrushes in which the head of the toothbrush rotates about its axis, with such axis being substantially perpendicular to the body of the toothbrush.

In this case too, however, the cleaning action does not meet the rotary movement requirements of the toothbrush.

The aim of the present invention is to provide a toothbrush that makes it possible to provide an optimal cleaning action that can be actuated with the user moving the body of the toothbrush in a totally conventional manner.

Within this aim, an object of the present invention is to provide a toothbrush that enables the user to obtain a cleaning action that derives from a rotary movement although making rectilinear movements in order to move the toothbrush in contact with the surface of the teeth.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a toothbrush that is highly reliable, easily and practically implemented, and low cost.

This aim and these and other objects which will become better apparent hereinafter are achieved by a toothbrush, which comprises a toothbrush body that is provided at one end with a cleaning head that is adapted to be accommodated rotatably inside a seat that is defined in said body, for a rotation of said head about an axis thereof, characterized in that said seat and said head are shaped so as to enable a rotation of said head about the axis of said seat, with an axis that is inclined with respect to the axis of said seat.

Further characteristics and advantages of the invention will become better apparent from the description of preferred, but not exclusive, embodiments of the toothbrush according to the invention, which are illustrated by way of non-limiting example in the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the toothbrush according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the toothbrush according to the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a side view of the toothbrush according to the invention, with dotted lines showing the positions that the head can assume during use;

FIG. 4 is a plan view from below of the toothbrush according to the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a side view, partially in cross-section, of the toothbrush according to the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a side view, partially in cross-section, of an enlarged detail of a portion of FIG. 5, with dotted lines showing the different operating positions of the head;

FIGS. 7a, 7b, 7c and 7d are views of the toothbrush according to the invention, with the head in a sequence of operating positions.

With reference to the figures, the toothbrush according to the invention, which is generally designated by the reference numeral 1, comprises a toothbrush body 2 that is provided at one end with a cleaning head 3 that is provided with bristles. Conveniently, the body 2 can, for example, be shaped like the handpiece of a dental drill, which is a tool used by dentists for surgical operations.

The head 3 is advantageously provided by a body 4 of the head, which is shaped so as to be able to rotate on itself about an axis thereof and at the same time be able to rotate within a seat 5 that is defined in one end of the toothbrush body 2.

Advantageously, the seat 5 has a central hole 6 that is connected to a substantially hemispherical portion 7.

The base of the hemisphere is substantially convex, with a flat central portion 8 and two lateral portions 9 which are inclined with respect to the flat central portion 8.

The body 4 of the head 3 thus has a lower portion 10, which is adapted to be accommodated inside the seat 5, which is also substantially hemispherical and of such size as to be accommodated with play inside the portion 7 of the seat 5.

The particular shape of the lower portion 10 of the body 4 of the head enables such lower portion to be accommodated inside the seat 5 and in particular inside the portion 7 of the seat 5.

The shape of the portion 10 that is complementary to the shape of the seat 5 enables the body 4 of the head 3 to rotate inside the portion 7 of the seat 5, with a first rotary motion of the head about its own axis, and a second rotary motion of the head that occurs with the portion 10 of the body 4 rotating inside the portion 7 with a rotary motion that brings the axis of the head to be inclined with respect to the vertical. In fact, for rotation, the body 4 of the head uses the inclined portions 9 of the convex base of the portion 7 of the seat 5, thus allowing the body 4 to be inclined, as shown in dotted lines in FIGS. 3 and 6, in its rotary motion inside the seat 5.

The hole 6 of the seat 5 is then connected, through the portion 7 of the seat 5, to a through hole 11 that connects it with the exterior of the toothbrush body 2.

The shape of the head enables it to perform a rotation about its own axis, combined with a rotation imparted by the movement of the portion 10 of the body 4 inside the portion 7, with an axis that is inclined with respect to the vertical. The movement of the head is shown in particular in FIGS. 7a -7 d.

Such combined rotation movements substantially thus reproduce a rotary motion that is similar to that of an orbital polisher, where the polishing tool rotates about its own axis but at the same time is also made to rotate by the movement of the user who manipulates it with his/her arm.

The difference is however constituted by the fact that the rotation axis of the head in its movement inside the seat is always angled with respect to the axis of the seat itself.

Using the toothbrush according to the invention involves the user simply moving the toothbrush in straight lines and the head 4 rotates on its own inside its seat, thus ensuring the desired cleaning action.

The dental handpiece ergonomics of the toothbrush body 2 enables the user to grip the toothbrush in an optimal manner, and thus exert a cleaning action, together with an alternating rotatory action of the cleaning head 3.

In practice it has been found that the toothbrush according to the present invention fully achieves the set aim and objects, in that it makes it possible to obtain a cleaning operation with a combined rotation of the cleaning head, together with a handle of the toothbrush body which is shaped like a dental handpiece.

The toothbrush, thus conceived, is susceptible of numerous modifications and variations, all of which are within the scope of the appended claims. Moreover, all the details may be substituted by other, technically equivalent elements.

In practice the materials employed, and the contingent dimensions and shapes, may be any according to requirements and to the state of the art. 

1-6. (canceled)
 7. A toothbrush, which comprises a toothbrush body that is provided at one end with a cleaning head that is adapted to be accommodated rotatably inside a seat that is defined in said body, for a rotation of said head about an axis thereof, wherein said seat and said head are shaped so as to enable a rotation of said head about the axis of said seat, with an axis that is inclined with respect to the axis of said seat.
 8. The toothbrush according to claim 7, wherein said head is hemispherical in shape.
 9. The toothbrush according to claim 7, wherein said seat has a hemispherical portion, with a convex base.
 10. The toothbrush according to claim 9, wherein said seat is shaped so as to have a central hole that is connected to said hemispherical portion with a convex base.
 11. The toothbrush according to claim 9, wherein a portion of said hemispherical seat is connected centrally with a through hole that is adapted to connect said hemispherical portion with the exterior.
 12. The toothbrush according to claim 7, wherein said toothbrush body is shaped like a dental handpiece. 